Finding his voice: Don Orsillo has gone from rookie to respected broadcaster

By BRIAN MacPHERSON | | Journal Sports Writer

Sunday

May 29, 2011 at 7:00 PM

BOSTON — Jerry Remy has the restaurant, the line of children’s books and the catchy nickname with the slangy spelling.

BOSTON - Jerry Remy has the restaurant, the line of children'sbooks and the catchy nickname with the slangy spelling.

But Don Orsillo is the glue that has held the NESN broadcaststogether over the last three seasons.

Remy took an extended leave of absence from the NESN booth twoyears ago to deal with lung cancer, pneumonia and a bout withdepression. He took another two-plus weeks off starting in lateApril, again to cope with pneumonia. During that time, Orsillo hasworked with 23 different color commentators - some experienced,some not - and even called the majority of one game by himself.

In the process, the Smithfield resident developed a broadcastingpersonality all his own, a personality that can carry broadcastswhether Remy is participating. He first came into nationalprominence when he made his postseason debut in 2007, and a BostonGlobe report on Sunday indicated that TBS has made a run at Orsilloto work national games full-time.

"All I ever heard was, you're only as good as the guy you'rewith, and now I understand it," NESN and TBS analyst DennisEckersley said. "It's just a smooth thing, how he does it."

Ten years ago, when Orsillo replaced Sean McDonough as theplay-by-play voice of the Red Sox television broadcasts, he didn'thave the experience or the confidence to take charge of thebroadcasts the way he has. He almost always deferred to Remy.

"He would always be very reverential and take whatever ribbingJerry would give him, be the younger brother," NESN producer RussKenn said. "It's a sign of the growth and a sign of the strength oftheir relationship that they can give it back and forth and makeeach other laugh."

When the score is close, Orsillo and Remy take the game asseriously as their viewers want them to take it. When the scoregets out of hand, they sometimes start giggling like littleboys.

"There's going to be time in there when we're going to havefun," Orsillo said. "You're not going to do it when the game istight or close or the competition level is high, but you will do itwhen there's not a lot going on. Baseball lends itself to having agood time. It's a game. We try to have fun."

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Orsillo came of age as a broadcaster as the radio voice of theSingle-A Pittsfield Mets and the Double-A Binghamton Mets beforelanding a job as the voice of the Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox in1996. Five years later, Orsillo got the job he'd always dreamed ofwhile growing up in Madison, N.H. - the television voice of the RedSox alongside Remy.

"He's somebody you can communicate with, somebody you like, andthat makes for a good combination," Remy said. "He's got a goodknowledge of the game itself, and that certainly helps out."

All of a sudden, in the middle of spring training in 2009, Remywasn't there.

Remy had had a cancerous growth removed from his lung theprevious November, and he developed an infection and a case ofpneumonia following the surgery. During spring training, he onlydisclosed that he was suffering from pneumonia, and Orsillo rotateda crew of Sox beat writers through the NESN booth during theperiodic Grapefruit League broadcasts.

Six weeks later, Remy issued a statement disclosing the cancertreatment and the illness in May, at which point he took a leave ofabsence that lasted for most of the season. It was left to Orsilloto work with a revolving door of analysts who sat in the chair Remyhad filled since 1988.

Orsillo found himself sometimes breaking in broadcasting rookiessuch as Eckersley, Dave Roberts and Frank Viola; and at other timestrying to mesh with experienced partners with whom he'd neverworked, including Jim Kaat and Buck Martinez.

"The color analysts, many of them were not experienced, and hewas in the role of teacher and leader - and he had to do his ownstuff," Kenn said. "It was a big unknown. But he was able to handleit because he's so prepared and because he'd worked hard atit."

"I just felt like he and I were chirping, just having aconversation," Eckersley said of his work with Orsillo. "That'swhere the relaxing part comes. Ultimately, that's where you need togo. It's not about, necessarily, information. It's a comfort levelbetween the two guys."

When Orsillo worked with Jim Kaat, who pitched for 25 seasons inthe major leagues, he used the opportunity to ask about howpitchers control the running game - in particular, how the use ofthe slide-step has evolved over time.

"We got in a cab (after the game), and he goes, 'You don'trealize, do you?' " Orsillo said. "I said, 'What?' He said, 'Icreated the slide-step. I was the first guy ever to slide-step.' Isaid, 'You're kidding me.' "

Working with an analyst as experienced as Remy was a securityblanket for Orsillo for almost a decade. The absence of Remy gaveOrsillo a chance to come into his own as a broadcaster.

"The range of what he had to do a couple of years, I thinkpeople saw a different guy," Eckersley said. "It's not that hewasn't good before, but that just goes to show you what he'scapable of doing. That's not easy."

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It's become like an Abbott and Costello routine.

Before every Red Sox game, manager Terry Francona meets with theprint media. The NESN broadcast crew, including Orsillo and Remy,sits in on the conversation.

When the mood strikes, as the meeting with the media winds down,Francona will look over at Orsillo.

In truth, that couldn't be farther from the truth - and Franconaknows that better than anyone.

"I actually think he's got a really good voice," Francona said."I would never tell him that."

Orsillo and Francona have developed a genuine friendship duringthe seven-plus seasons since the manager was hired. The NESN crewtravels with the Red Sox from city to city, and the two see eachother on the plane, in the hotel and at the ballpark. Francona andOrsillo sometimes have breakfast together, and they'll chat beforeor after swims at hotel pools.

"It's my impression that he uses Don as a sounding board," Kennsaid of Francona. "They do have a unique relationship and have fora while - and that's a credit to Don."

During the offseason, Orsillo rarely sees Francona - but he doeshear from him.

"I wonder what he does with his life in the offseason," Orsillosaid. "Anytime I'm on TV for four seconds, whether it be a Red Soxhot-stove show, whether it be a Red Sox Report, or some show thatwas taped 10 years ago that's on TV now, I will get a text, andit'll say, 'You're too fat. How did you get on television?' or 'Youstink. How are you in the major leagues?' or 'Aren't we a majormarket?', all that stuff. It never fails."

A year ago, while Orsillo was broadcasting a Tampa Bay-Texasgame for TBS, his phone began to buzz during a broadcast. He shutit off and forgot about it. But when analyst Ron Darling askedwho'd been texting him while he was on the air, he looked down.

Sure enough, it was Francona.

"He was on some treadmill, and he said, 'Keep talking. I'm oneRays rally away from falling asleep,' " Orsillo said ofFancona's text.

The friendship between Francona and Orsillo has grown over time.When Orsillo wonders about a decision the manager makes or thereason a particular player might be struggling, he can go toFrancona and ask - which, in turn, enhances the broadcast.

"Ninety percent of it, I probably couldn't use on air, to behonest with you," he said. "You'd lose trust there. You haveinformation that you couldn't use in that instance, but you have anidea of why it's happening."

But that doesn't stop the ribbing.

"Thank God he's got a good voice, because he could do nothingelse," Francona said.

That Orsillo takes - and even encourages - the abuse is evidenceof the self-confidence that has grown in recent years, especiallysince TBS first tapped him to call playoff games in 2007.

No challenge, it seems, is too steep for Orsillo now.

"It is not easy to be the voice of the Boston Red Sox,"Eckersley said. "There's a lot of pressure that comes with that, alot of scrutiny that comes with that, just like all the players.He's handled it as well as anybody could."